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Contemporary Political Theory
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Contemporary Political Theory
A Reader

First Edition
Edited by:

Courses:
Political Theory

January 2004 | 320 pages | SAGE Publications Ltd
`Colin Farrelly has gathered together in one volume several of the key texts that have shaped recent developments in political theory. The structure of the book reflects that of many courses offering surveys of recent debates between liberals and their critics. It is an excellent teaching resource' -

Shane O'Neill, Queen's University, Belfast

`An excellent selection of key pieces that have shaped the debates that dominate contemporary political philosophy. Each section is prefaced with a clear and insightful introduction which gives a valuable commentary on each piece, sets it in its context, and indicates its influence on the field. This book will be a very useful resource for students of these debates from all backgrounds' -

Catriona McKinnon, University of York

Contemporary Political Theory provides an accessible introduction to the key works of major contemporary political theorists. Key theorists and writers include John Rawls, Robert Nozick, Michael Walzer, Michael Sandel, Susan Okin, Will Kymlicka, Iris Marion Young, Charles Taylor, Nancy Fraser and John Dryzek.

The readings are organized thematically into seven sections on egalitarian-liberalism, libertarianism, communitarianism, republicanism, feminism, deliberative democracy, and multiculturalism. A substantial introduction is provided to each to identify the main issues and the significance of the carefully selected excerpts that follow.

The result is a complete but concise guide through the literature and major topics and areas of debate in contemporary political theory and political philosophy.

Colin Farrelly is Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Waterloo, Canada. Contemporary Political Theory: A Reader will complement his textbook Introduction to Contemporary Political Theory also published by SAGE Publications.


 
PART ONE: EGALITARIAN-LIBERALISM
John Rawls
Justice as Fairness
John c Harsanyi
The Maximin Principle
Richard J Arneson
Primary Goods Reconsidered
Alex Callinicos
Equality of What?
John Kekes
A Question for Egalitarians
 
PART TWO: LIBERTARIANISM
Robert Nozick
The Entitlement Theory of Justice
Eric Mack
How Liberty Upsets Patterns
Robert E Litan
On Rectification in Nozick's Minimal State
David Gauthier
Justice as Mutual Advantage
Allen Buchanan
A Critique of Justice as Reciprocity
 
PART THREE: COMMUNITARIANISM
Michael J Sandel
The Procedural Republic and the Unencumbered Self
Will Kymlicka
Liberal Individualism and Liberal Neutrality
Michael Walzer
Complex Equality
 
PART FOUR: REPUBLICANISM
Philip Pettit
Freedom as Antipower
Alan Patten
The Republican Critique of Liberalism
James Bohman
Cosmopolitan Republicanism
 
PART FIVE: FEMINISM
Susan Moller Okin
The Public/Private Dichotomy
Iris Marion Young
The Ideal of Community and the Politics of Difference
Nancy Fraser
Recognition or Redistribution
 
PART SIX: DELIBERATIVE DEMOCRACY
Iris Marion Young
The Deliberative Model
Amy Gutmann and Dennis Thompson
Deliberative Democracy Beyond Process
John S Dryzek
Legitimacy and Economy in Deliberative Democracy
 
PART SEVEN: MULTICULTURALISM
Charles Taylor
The Politics of Recognition
Bhikhu Parekh
Equality of Difference
Chandran Kukathas
Liberalism and Multiculturalism

An excellent selection of key pieces that have shaped the debates that dominate contemporary political philosophy. Each section is prefaced with a clear and insightful introduction which gives a valuable commentary on each piece, sets it in its context, and indicates its influence on the field. This book will be a very useful resource for students of these debates from all backgrounds, as well as for the general reader who wants to hear the theoretical voices behind the disputes that shape the current political scene.

Dr Catriona McKinnon, Lecturer in Political Philosophy, University of York.

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